[Question] Marcel, you joined SUSI&James as Managing Director at the beginning of 2021. What was everyday life like back then?
Marcel: I know that there was short-time work in 2020. The slump in orders was clearly noticeable, ultimately of course due to the extremely difficult situation at our customers, for example due to production stops or also the collapse of supply chains. Today, however, it is apparent that the pandemic very impressively demonstrated the need for a digital transformation of corporate processes, which of course helped us.
The pandemic has also made companies more cost-sensitive. Of course, this generally makes investments more difficult, but if a quick return on investment can be expected, as is the case with our solutions, I experience a high level of openness among our customers. In addition, flexible licensing models adapted to the use case create further freedom.
[Question] Has the pandemic changed the business model?
Marcel: Basically no. I believe that customers have become much more sensitive and open to topics in the area of digitization, process acceleration, efficiency enhancement, etc.. And that is precisely our Leistungsversprechen.
However, along with the sensitization, a bit of the willingness to take risks has also been lost. Nowadays, we have to at least plausibilize an immediate added value through a "proof of concept" before the actual development can start. Of course, this is understandable, but it may delay the process.
[Question] How has the interaction with companies, prospects and customers changed?
Marcel: Most people work in a home office these days. Accessibility is a bit more difficult than before. But a bigger pain point for us is that without personal contact, it's hard to develop a personal relationship of trust. After all, we are deeply involved in corporate processes, which requires a great deal of trust.
It used to be much easier to build up trust, as we more often spoke face to face, had a coffee together or spontaneously dropped in on the customer. Nowadays, meetings are more likely to take place via teams, Zoom, the telephone or we exchange information briefly by e-mail. Of course, this has great advantages, but it is somewhat of a hindrance when it comes to building relationships and networking. That makes networking events, trade fairs and similar formats all the more important.
[Question] Our Smart Office product was developed not so long ago. To what extent did the pandemic and the need for digitization contribute to its development?
Marcel: The pandemic and the resulting digitization pressure have accelerated the development of the Smart Office, but ultimately our solution is the logical answer to common market problems: lack of accessibility by telephone, shortage of skilled workers, inefficient processes, etc. I can't say whether the pandemic was the decisive factor, but it at least contributed.
[Question: Is it more difficult to distribute the product nowadays?
Marcel: Not necessarily more difficult, but different. The distribution channels have simply changed. The difficulty lies in finding out what the target group needs and how best to address them. Often the initial approach is via mail, LinkedIn or even cold calling. Before the pandemic, personal networking played a bigger role.
That makes it all the nicer to meet people at events, to get to know each other and to exchange ideas. The last such event we attended was the Partner Networking Event of the Future Workshop 4.0.
[Question] Has end-user acceptance of AI solutions changed?
Marcel: There are studies that show that more and more people are more open to new technologies. Whether that can be attributed to the pandemic, I dare to doubt. In general, acceptance of new technologies is rising steadily, partly due to the current strong media presence. At the same time, of course, there is a certain skepticism about customer satisfaction, user-friendliness, data security, and so on. However, we place an extremely high value on these topics, and creating a positive user experience is at the core of our DNA. This is also reflected by our customers, which makes us very happy. The end customers come to us with the speed at which SUSI spricht , sehr gut zurecht. Vor allem, wenn ältere Menschen anrufen, ist das enorm wichtig.
[Question] What is the implementation speed of the project and product today?
Marcel: My impression is that the decision-making processes for certain topics have slowed down again, but this is understandable because the pressure to implement has decreased. During the pandemic, for example, companies had no choice but to offer their employees the option of working remotely and to create the necessary conditions for this.
The fundamental need and understanding of the necessity for ongoing digital transformation exists, but no longer at the speed of 3 years ago. At the same time, this gives us the opportunity to identify the requirements in detail with our customers and align our products and solutions accordingly.
